By Myke Uzendu, Abuja
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara said he left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for All Progressives Congress (APC) because the Bauchi State governor, Senator Bala Mohammed does not respect procurement acts, segments payments of salaries and failed to conduct local government elections.
He said that the governor took N4.6 billion loan from a bank which he has not been able to account for.
Hon. Dogara in a resignation letter dated 24th July, 2020 and addressed to the The Chairman People’s Democratic Party, Bogoro ‘C’ Ward, Bogoro LGA, Bauchi State which was sighted by The AUTHORITY said that he will be accused of engaging in anti-party activity if he continues to probe the misdeeds of the governor while in the PDP.
Parts of the letter reads, “I write to intimate you of my decision to resign my membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
“This became necessary because the same reasons why we fought hard in 2019 to effect changes in the governance of our dear state are festering now.
“I intend to bring these issues to the front burners once again as the fight to install decent and egalitarian government in our dear state continues.
“Specifically, I intend to ask questions about the following:
“What has happened to LGA allocations since May 2019?
“What happened to our campaign promise to conduct LGA elections within six months of the PDP government?
“What happened to the N4.6 billion loan taken from a bank and paid directly into an private company’s account?
“Why are we segmenting salaries and why is payment of salaries of state workers outsourced to a private firm as consultants?
“Why are contracts inflated, awarded and payment of mobilisation done in violation of extant rules on procurement?
“Why are our highly revered Traditional Rulers and Elders treated with odium contrary to the guarantee we gave during the campaign that such will not happen under a PDP government?
“Mr. Chairman, you will agree with me that I cannot raise these issues and many more questions without a charge of disloyalty levelled against me if I were to remain a member of the PDP.
“I cannot also fail to raise these questions now, having raised similar ones during the administrations of Governors Isa Yuguda and Mohammed A. Abubakar. If I abdicate this responsibility on the altar of partisan loyalty, I will be the most irresponsible and unprincipled politician in Bauchi State.
“Thus, by this letter, I have resigned my membership of the PDP to enable me keep faith with my principle of fighting for good governance in our Dear State”.
Hon. Dogara who cans be described as a serial defector was elected thrice to the House of Representative under PDP but decamped to the APC in 2014 at the formation stage of the party and was elected Speaker of the House in 2015 under the APC despite objections from the APC leadership.
Just before the 2019 general election, Hon. Dogara abandoned APC to the PDP saying that the party have not been able to fulfill its electoral promises only to return to APC barely 18 months after.
